Kaipola, My first experience in a film and the delectable Ela Ada and Kerala Meals on the Set

All of us have seen films and enjoyed the world of emotions it takes us through. Many of us might have seen how a movie was made and the effort behind the artistic creation. Recently I got a chance to show my face in a film called Kaipola, where I was fortunate enough to join the famous actor Indrans. Kaipola is to be released on April 7th and my road to this movie began way back when the director Shyju rang me about some traditional dishes. Later when he told me about a role in a song along with the renowned actor Indrans, that’s when it all transpired for me to have my first experience in a film.

Kaipola has been one of the most famous snacks variety of Malabar and it’s usually served as an evening snack. It’s nothing but a delicious dish made of ripe bananas and this sweet dish is quite easy to prepare. If you have been to Malabar you would have surely come across this recipe which is readily available across the region. This film brings you some young and talented actors including Sajal who is in fact the hero in this movie. Ebi Kuruvila is the name of the character he plays and he is apparently a food vlogger in this movie.

The camera was all set for the shoot and big jackfruit slices in circular shapes is kept on the table. The tempting smell of ripe jackfruit was everywhere around. Sajal was in the midst of making Jackfruit ada and since he plays the role of a food vlogger, he himself was helping with the chopping of ripe Jackfruit. Chandu comes in as a friend of Ebi in the film and he is helping us with sorting out the Jackfruit pieces. He has been having some slices in between and that made us all smile. A pan is kept on the stove with some water for boiling and small jaggery pieces have been added to get it melted. Sajal helped me with the amount of jaggery which should be used. Chandu came in swiftly to nab some jaggery pieces.

Ila ada has been a popular dish and it can be made with ripe banana or jackfruit. The one which is made with ripe jackfruit and jaggery has a unique flavour. The combination of sweet jackfruit with jaggery gives away an attractive aroma. It’s been a refreshing experience for me in front of the big screen and the movie is truly a combined effort of so many people working tirelessly behind the scenes.

A function saw Indrans cut the cake and the whole unit came in to join the celebrations. I have my scenes shot in the morning and it was a wonderful experience. Although every movie looks beautiful in the final stages, it has a story of tremendous hard work and dedication of many people working behind the curtains.

Some of us might have wondered about the food served in a shooting set. When it was time to have lunch, rice was served with several vegetable dishes like Beetroot Thoran, Kootukari, Chutney, Pickle, Sambar, Parippu curry and so on. There were also a few non-vegetarian recipes like Ayala fry (mackerel), Omlete and Chicken Kadai. People take the food on a plate and sit together for lunch.

I had my lunch with Sajal and he took eggs with some vegetable dishes. He doesn’t take rice and he is more fond of chappati than rice. When we were having our food, the director Shyju came to join us. We had some conversations and he mentioned about his next movie named ‘LF’. It is quite an intriguing title making people wonder what’s the subject of the film. That’s when a small drizzle came in disrupting our conversation and later when the rain has gone, I had my lunch.

There were plans to check out the cooking for lunch, but since I had a small shoot in the morning, I have seen some of the shooting processes and that made me drop the plan to go to Kitchen. The food was really good and tasty, it was a pleasant experience for me to take part in a shooting scene with the actor Indrans.